Only selected objects in Bonny's stall

photos by Giulia Agostini

Francesco Bonetti, alias Bonny, is another interesting character that I found along Navigli's outdoor market. Here, he was sitting on one of his stylish chair and chatting with a friend about their passion: collecting 20th-century art and products.

Twenty years ago, this interest started as an amusement for Bonny. That's why he has given no order to his stall. Only his distinguishing taste rules the wonderful vintage clothes, bags and furnite sold here. What he particularly loves is furniture of Gio Ponti and Sarfatti's lamps.

A lot of person are bond to Bonny's stall. Despite the economic crisis, customers always visit him and ask him for his exclusive products. Although he makes all the efforts to satisfy them, sometimes he finds it difficult because their requests are rare.

Unfortunately, high-selected and genuine objects are getting difficult to find out in the attic full of know-off ones.

The pure Vintage life of Aurora Tassi

photos by Giulia Agostini, model Yulissa Aranibar Espinoza

On the last Sunday of every month, the outdoor market takes place in Navigli zone. Hundreds of stalls are displayed and specialised on collecting 20th-century art, antique or vintage products. Yesterday I join my friend Yulissa there, as I am used every last month Sunday.

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Here, I found a colourful woman called Aurora Tassi and her outstanding dresses and bags. Kindly, she replied to my questions and revealed a lot about herself and her business. As long she can remember, she is fond of vintage clothes with a particular interest on all the kinds before the 80s. And if you search out something current, for sure it is an exceptional item.

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One-shot and unique are the best adjectives for her stall. That's why a lot of people recognise it wherever she sells and she has already gained a group of regular customers that knows that she has only the best. In addition, she offers a post service: indeed, clients can required some taillored applications or arrangements to their purchases. Moreover, a lot of them contact her via internet asking for photos of her products.

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What is more astonishing of Aurora is her being ante litteram: she used to collect Vintage 30 years before it became an overused fashion.

R&Dlab: a curious group

r&dlab, photos by Giulia Agostini

In this sunny and warm afternoon, I stopped in the brand-new showroom of R&Dlab in Via Tortona. Here, I had an incredibly out-of-the box conversation with Roberto Vaccari, member of the Creative Department of this research and design centre.

That lab is sprouted from a long period of work of its art director, Michele Ruffin, and his staff in Okinawa's firm. Before arriving in via Tortona, Mr. Ruffin gained his first experience in belts, then he moved to labels, finally he interested on bio and eco products and grouped together creative and curious people and opened his own business.

Indeed, curiousity is one of the keyword of the team. Their research extends from fashion and design to materials. As Mrs. Vaccari asserted: "Everything is transformation; nothing has to be created, everything we need already exists: we have only to take it from the waste bin and give it a new identity, a new function". And with this ecological phylosophy, they start working on small things to a deeper and bigger goal: respect our enviroment.

Because the ambient place where part of them grewn up is Italy, the creative department chooses made in Italy and high quality elements and neglects cheap, low profile, far east materials. On the other hand, the first doesn't benefit the price.

But is this appreaciable effort comprehended by the customers? Unfortunately, not too much. Whereas the lab invests a lot on research and has already created a particular kind of recycled paper cloth washable, the clients prefer to waste their money and their future on cheaper and short lasting material. Even though it proposes diffirentiated and personal produts, the mass continue to follow the mass in the wrong way.

It's all about culture. Actually, R&D doesn't sell fashion, it suggests a culture where the object is the mean in the relationship between the man and the nature.

r&dlab showroom

via Tortona n°15 angolo via Forcella

Milano

tel. +39 0283242148

www.redlab.info

Contacto: a link with Puglia art/handcraftsmen

photos by Giulia Agostini and Yulissa Aranibar Espinoza

Contacto exhibition has travelled a lot before arriving in Milan at Aria Savona during the Female Fashion week SS09. Indeed, this display coming from Puglia region and showing the best of its brains has passed through Bari, Brussellex, Turin and it is arriving even in Vilnius, the European culture capital 2009. In terms of time, it started on September 2007 when ICE (Italian international trading institute)decided to develop a managerial course in order to expand the local textile factories in South Italy internationally.

As Daniele Del Genio, Calceviva-Rossorame’s executive, explained me, that project aimed to provide managers of Puglia with the current, technical knowhow and the comprehension of the relevance of giving meaning to products. That’s why they created a cross between fashion, interior design and art in this exhibition.

Basically, equal space has been given to each firms displayed as it is used in a house. And the domestic light, in place of tradition, seems to be the link of everything. For example, different garments are re-used as a lamp, or a pillow or a chair, using artistic creativity to design elements from consumed fashion.

From the concept home to the mother-country ones: “made in Italy” above all as a well-known brand of high quality. Foreigner visitors are more aware of this and pay more attention of what happens in the content of the exhibit from their external point of view. On the other hand, Italian prefers to look at the nice, cute, pretty design of the flat wall. One day, they’ll be bumping into it and discovering that they will have to look up to this project, keeping up to date.

Give new life and idea to everything, and mainly to economy.

Meet2biz: a living room in Milan

photos by Giulia Agostini

The first time I entered Meet2biz in Naviglio Grande, I thought: where I am? but after a while, I felt really comfortable, as I was in my living room. Indeed, this is the concept of the store.

Its opening was a long way. Actually, their owner's were already working on this showroom long time before. Everything started with the efforts of a group of young people who wanted to bring in Milan the brand new and variety in the very static and fake-elitaristic fashion world. After some experience in temporary exhibit developped in events around the city, they stopped here in Alzaia Naviglio Pavese.

How is the store like? Firstly, there's a cute garden outside with a big wooden sofa. Then, you enter and you find another two armchairs with a table and a bookshelf upon and clothes around. If you sit down, you can have a rest and read a book or choose a cd in front of you and put it on. Enjoy it. If you continue to discover this place, you bump into another room where a enourmous red sofa is waiting for you.

Why all these sofas? Well, the concept of the showroom is to create a inhouse space like a living room. The owners know that people come here to have a look and they'll turn another time to buy, so it is essential to prepare an enviroment that call them back. Mainly, they're not that kind of sellers that compel you to buy: be yourself, choose your style and possibly find it here. These are their motto. And they help you a lot in building your style because they change every month their products and designers hosted.

The capability of creating relationship through their personality, products and atmosphere is their strenght: not only through the appropriate interior design and high-quality and taillored clothes, but also through pr agency, myspace, blog, friendship, cobrandings. In this manner they are able to invite everyone in their living room for good cup of cofee and a pleasant chat, as I had.

M2b:
Alzaia Naviglio Grande 14, 20144 Milano
http://www.meet2bizshop.com/wordpress/
Tel.: +39 339 7962395
Tel.: +39 339 8995760
Fax : +39 02 36587091
Email: info(at)meet2bizshop.com

S2B:ygem+amplified

photos by Giulia Agostini

This evening some friends and I went by chance to a presentation in S2B showroom in Via Tortona. Although there were not too many people, the atmosphere was good. Indeed, a youg cover band and an experienced one played, while waiters served free beer and wine for the attendants.

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What was the real core event was the two collections inside the showroom. Whereas in the basement black and musical t-shirt of Amplified were exposed, on the ground floor we could have a look of the collection of leather shoes of a french brand, called ygem.

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Was the party linked with the outfits? Yes, the rock music matched the vintage, rock'n'punk, b movies style, with the printed tongue of Amplified and also the leather roman-style sandals of Ygem. The party atmosphere has made these brands remarkable for me and for my friends, and for sure we're going to advise them to everyone.

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But knowing something more about the management of the store was my aim. Indeed, I talked some minutes with the pr responsable for the event and in charge of the showroom for its agency, S2B service for business. They opened 3 years ago here in Milan, and they had some consolidated experience in communication and pr sector.

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Basically, the guideline of their store is fashion viewed in a new way. This has to be integrated with the taste of the customers that want to show their personality through clothes. Mainly, they try to create this kind of event where costumers can feel to be in their right place in order to make them turn again in the shop and feel attached to the brand.

For sure my friends and I felt in love with Amplified and Yem. Good work guys.

http://www.amplifiedclothing.com/

Who does fashion change?

As pretty all this week, I was in the press area in Fieramilanocity and found another interesting object. This is a bag of a new upcoming designer called Serena Priscola and produced by Ripell and belongs to Dark Love collection.

The relevant detail of the purse is the screen on it. Besides the oddity of its presence, there's a face of a boy changing every 5 seconds on it. On the bag a white writing stated: "change your boy, don't change your bag".

What's it trying to tell us? Keep me, your little beloved, material bag-world that gives you a safe and acceptable identity so that you can live by yourself? and leave the uncertain, emotional world where the presence of the other poses you questions about yourself? Yes, it's far more better let something guide you and give you the right, exclamatory indication. Are you sure that you'll find some pieces of you after all this process in the long run?

Native

photos by Giulia Agostini
As I entered, I felt to be swallowed by the furniture and objects sold in Native. At the beginning, all this things put together gave me a confusional status. Then, focusing on the division of the spaces of the shop, I worked out that a logic existed.

As the owner told me, Native sells things for your house, to make it more agreeable. That's why the store should look like your house, with a corridor, with a dining room and living room. And what catches you eyes is the colourful objects like crockery, glasses, sheets placed all in their cupboard or wardrobe as you are used at home.

Everything starts from Cristallerie di Livellara that decided to have a store closer to their customer. Actually, this one is a multibrand shop, even though is owned by that factory. Moreover, it has been created as an hand-crafted place that gives visibility to the brand Cristallerie di Livellara but where the firm is only the frame.

And the customers has always had good opinion of Native. Indeed, they found a wide display where to choose how to create the atmosphere in their own houses. Not only do normal people appreciate this place, but also conoisseurs and professional ones. Properly, this house-like store won the award of the Furniture Fair in 2008.

Luz

photos by Giulia Agostini

It is only one year since a nice woman opened this cute shop called Luz along Naviglio Grande. After a long experience in fashion world, Sonia made up to run her own business, built up autonomally even financially.

What you can see and feel in this shop is the owner herself. From the clothes to the last meaningless object in this place, everything is decided by her and her elegant taste. Indeed, this doolhouse-like store reminds of the childhood and the wolly manufactured garnments recall the wrinkled hands of my grandma needleworking.

The feeling to be in a comfortable home in front of the fireplace is not only mine. Indeed, also Sonia stated that her customers appreciate the atmosphere and after the first purchase, they're always back.

And if you're not back, enter for the first time...

Luz

Alzaia Naviglio Grande 4

Milano

http://4luz.style.it/

Invest in your retail space

Fashionweek: dress or body?

As every end of September, female fashion week arrives in Milan. Although I am really interested in, I am not here to talk you about catwalks, but what is inside the word and world of fashion.

Indeed, this morning I paid attention at a particular mannequienne. I was waiting for a show in the press area in Fieramilanocity and entered a stand which exposed experementalistic clothes. There was this iron-cable like mannequienne and it makes me think about our perception of the body and our relationship with clothes.

Is our body a cage that we cover with a dress? or do we reveal ourselves through what we wear?

Marzona

photos by Giulia Agostini

I was walking this afternoon along Naviglio Grande and by chance one of the wooden door was opened. So, I entered and a banner alerted me about the precence of this cute cashmire clothes shop, called Marzona.

This one has a really simple style and few items, unfortunately. It is easy to see the prices and touch the wolly and soft garnment. A little bit of mess inside...and makes you feel to be in a proper tailor's laboratory.

Fortunately, I found the owner, a very friendly girl that previously studied Business administration in Bocconi University. After realising the possibility of the Cashmere garnment's market, she decided to run this business. Moreover, she focused on fashion accessories made of cashmere. Preferring this niche, she wagers on a high quality product with a medium price in its sector. Absolutely the style is unique as the store is one brand (Marzona).

Why does she host only her brand? up to now this seems to be the best solution financially and she's going to expand in Milan and abroad with a precise plan (Berlin, Monaco, London and Tokyo).

Does she feel that her products are welcomed by costumers and by Milan? Definitely yes. Indeed, her clients are always back and the know that exceptional quality and reasonable prices are there.

To sum up, this shop offers really essential and high quality garnments, a familiar and craftmade enviroment but what's make remarkable this place? maybe the green grass on the wall upon the rails?

MARZONA
Fashion designs made in Milano.
Alzaia Naviglio Grande 4
02.58105936
info@marcellamarzona.it
www.marcellamarzona.it/

Naviglio Grande zone

for parts of the photos thanks to Maurizio Zanoni, milanocittadarte.blogspot.com

If you look for a place in Milan that doesn't look like a skycraper, a grey building or a decadent block, you should visit Naviglio Grande zone. Anf if you love 50s, you'll appreaciate it even more. Although outside it seems to be composed by two simmetrical line of cute blocks divided by a quiet stream, open the wooden doors to discover amazing handmade, second hand and new designers shops.

EastPak&Raf Simons! presentation in Porta Ticinese

Milan is full of events and we have to keep up to date about them! So, let's start with the presentation of the cobranding between Raf Simons and EastPak in Corso di Porta Ticinese store. He signed a collection of small accessories as backpacks and handbags.

Besides the good music played during the evening, what catches your eye is the way them are disposed: a long, red, glossy wave in the center of the concept store displays the new collection and everyone can touch the cloth of the bags. T-shirt are hanged in a colour-logic way, on the other hand the typical backpack of the brands are collocated randomly.

Why did Raf Simons (Jil Sander's creative director) use simple, summer, monocolor clothes for the brand Eastpak? and mainly for a fall/winter collection? No one knows, neither he probably. Has Eastpak worked hard to move to a diffentiated product in the latest year, hasn't?

To sum up, the music was great, the interior design not outstanding but something different, the collection can be defined with a word worse than commercial and the party turned out to be the typical "go for a free drink", instead of an example of marketing experience and product launch.

from Visual merchandising to Retail experience

Visual merchandising, until recently called simply merchandising, is the activity of promoting the sale of goods, especially by their presentation in retail outlets. This includes combining product, environment, and space into a stimulating and engaging display to encourage the sale of a product or service.

Many elements can be used by visual merchandisers in creating displays, including colour, lighting, space, product information, sensory inputs such as smell, touch, and sound as well as technologies such as digital displays and interactive installations.

Visual merchandising is more like an art in the sense that there are implicit rules but that these also exist to be broken for striking effects. The main principle of visual merchandising is that it is intended to increase sales, which is not the case with a "real" art.

Visual merchandising is one of the final stages in trying to set out a store in a way that customers will find attractive and appealing and it should follow and reflect the principles that underpin the store’s image. Visual merchandising is the way one displays 'goods for sale' in the most attractive manner with the end purpose of making a sale. "If it does not sell, it is not visual merchandising."

Especially in today’s challenging economy, people may avoid designers/ visual merchandisers because they fear unmanageable costs. But in reality, visual merchandisers can help economise by avoiding costly mistakes. With guidance of a professional, retailer can eliminate errors, saving time and money. It is important to understand that the visual merchandiser is there, not to impose ideas, but to help clients articulate their own personal style.

VM is a mechanism to communicate to a customer and influence his decision to buy. VM uses season based displays to introduce new arrivals to customers, and thus increase conversions through a planned and systematic approach by displaying stocks available.

A close sister to visual merchandising is "retail experience". "Customer experience" looks at the same issues around product presentation but from the customer perspective, rather than the retailer perspective. In optimal retail environments such as the Apple Retail Stores, the visual merchandising, customer experience, and store design are all in synch creating amazing environments and unbelievable sales.

visualDESIGNbility: VISUALmerchandising+DESIGN+usaBILITY

We are, Fisherspooner, 2006

First of all, WELCOME TO EVERYONE!!!

If you wonder about the name and the why of this blog, read this page. If you don't, well, read it, you might find out something interesting.

Who am I? Well, I am Giulia Agostini, an italian girl who loves every form of art, people, travelling/discovering, good wine, reading and laughing. What’s more about me? I danced for a long time, played the piano for a long time, painted for a long time…and I don’t do a lot of things anymore because...because of a lot of reasons.

Where am I ? Although I come from the countryside of Venice, from a green village famous for Prosecco wine, I live in Milan for the most part of the year and go home few times. Indeed, I prefer to travel if I have some days off.

What am I doing here? I am developing a blog about design, was it not clear?

Why am I writing and developing a blog about DESIGN? This was required as a commitment of a design course among the ones that I attend in Economics and Management for Arts, Culture and Communication in Bocconi University. I think it will turn out to be something that I really feel doing and improving. Firstly, what has always interested me is how people communicate and the Internet is my main mean to keep in touch with friends from all over the world. Secondly, I’m fond of visual arts and design (interior, fashion and video making), and mainly of advertisement images. Have you ever thought how a photo can say more about the world we live in than thousends of epic poems? Finally, a blog allows you to have a place to speak your mind and keep your interests up daily like a diary.

Why did I choose "visualDESIGNbility"? Firstly, because it’s a pun based on "DESIGN" that is the main topic and "USABILITY". Usability is a term used to denote the ease with which people can employ a particular tool or other human-made object in order to achieve a particular goal. Usability can also refer to the methods of measuring functionality and the study of the principles behind an object's perceived efficiency or elegance. And "VISUAL" and it is referred to visualmerchanding. why usuability and visualmerchandising? Because how things are placed determines the possibility to touch, to see, to try the object to purchase and this make the consumption be an experience, non only a purchase. And this will be the guideline of the blog: deepen the how and why of the interior design elements of stores in Milan and understand their functionality and the way they affect the costumers.

How will I develop the blog? adding day by day new post, wandering in the city of MILAN and discovering each piece, taking photos and interviewing people and giving up this method only if I have to feature a particular happening that I'll attend. Mainly I'll try be interesting but not forced and pedant, improving the graphic design as much I will be able to, posting my favourite videos, pics and music.